Shingeki no Ikebukuro
by SCGirls
Summary: "So, you didn't die, Captain Orihara." He wasn't sure in what order his squad had died, but he did remember the smell of blood that raided the air and how heavy his body felt as he stood on the nape of a titan.
1. Chapter 1

I got this idea by reading Shirohimesstories's "Shingeki no Shizuo" and decided to write one of my own! While it is inspired by their work, it is not a copy of it and I honestly just thought that it was a cool idea!

Also, please note that the rating is subject to change whenever I feel like! This is your first and only warning on this.

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"So, you didn't die, Captain Orihara."

He hadn't been back inside the walls for an hour before his precious humans tracked him down for something that they deemed important. His humans were getting less and less patient it seemed for his return. His ruby gaze looked over at the dark brown-haired woman next to him, her stoic gaze focused on him with a stack of papers in her hand. Smirking, Izaya Orihara put his hands into the pockets of his favorite black coat with fur lining causing the woman to roll her eyes. "My my, Namie. Did you miss me that much to come greet me as soon as possible?"

His smirk only widened when he was rewarded with another roll of her eyes, causing them both to start walking together, the action itself is routine. It wasn't long until her eyes caught the glint of sunlight from his rings, drawing her attention toward his fingers that soon inclined her to scan his lithe frame quickly before focusing her gaze back in front of her. She ignored the looks that the two got as they passed other people, her fingers caressing the stack of papers. "You shouldn't have taken off your gear once inside the walls, you know. You are aware that you are always needed somewhere once you get back." She watched the raven shrug in her peripheral vision as they walked, only feeding into her increasing irritation. "I also suggest you put your gear back on along with changing that jacket of yours. You're wanted at the training grounds."

"Now Namie, who would I be if I did that?" The question, they both knew, was rhetorical. Izaya didn't care for the formalities of his rank; honestly, he would prefer to observe his humans as discreetly as possible and it would be difficult to do that with his rank jacket on. Trainees or not, they would know he was important then and focus everything in attempts to impress him. What fun would that be? His musings were cut short when the stack of papers that Nami had been holding landed in his field of vision. He smirked at the woman once more, taking the papers and scanning them. "I see. Did Namie gather information on the recruits for me? How sweet!"

"That is my job, Izaya." The woman's gaze stayed stoic, her voice level as she spoke. This man was already getting on her nerves and they had hardly spoken. She glanced at Izaya once more, his smirk only widening which just aggravated her more. "Hopefully you won't let these get killed like you did the last." The dark look he sent her way didn't go unnoticed, but she didn't react in the slightest. In fact, she smirked slightly; it was nice to get under her boss's skin occasionally. "I suggest that you look over those files and head over toward the training grounds. Akabayashi-san wishes to speak with you."

"Oh, I wonder what he wants." Izaya sang, a knowing look in his eye. He knew what the man would want the moment he came back. It was always the same thing, the same questions, the same accusations. He never liked watching his humans die, eaten by the monsters outside that are dressed in human skin, but it was a nasty side-effect of his job. Granted, it did give the raven more of a reason to put down the monsters. He didn't appreciate his humans dying by their hands, even if his humans didn't always make the smartest decisions. "It looks like a total of one hundred _volunteers_." Izaya sighed, resisting the urge to throw the papers behind him in some form of dramatic fashion. Instead, he threw his arms in the hair dramatically as he spoke. "They're just in it for food and the idea they'll be a hero. Ah, humans are predictable!"

"I thought you loved the predictability of your humans."

"Oh, I do. I'm just hoping at least some of them will be worth the effort to train. I don't enjoy watching my humans run to their deaths like lambs for slaughter." Izaya sighed dramatically, scanning through the pages once more. He could already tell where most of these volunteers would end up even if they made it through basic training and became cadets. Most of them would stay as either a member of The Blue Squares or Yellow Scarves and focus on guarding the walls and enforcing the laws, the top 10 would become part of the Awakusu-kai, who protect Shiki-san, and whoever was either brave—or dumb, depending on who you were speaking to—enough would join and work under Izaya as a member of the scouts. "In your opinion, did any of these recruits seem interesting?"

"Not particularly. Though, there were some volunteers from your wall. Raijin was it?"

The raven hummed in acknowledgment but said nothing. Raijin was the outermost wall, the one closest to the outside world and the titans that inhabited it. About ten years ago, the wall was breached and thousands of his precious humans were slaughtered by titans. The Raira District was the first to be affected and Izaya could remember it as if was yesterday; the screams of his humans, the smell of blood heavy in the air, and the pang of fear that he had felt for the first time in his life as he witnessed everything firsthand—though if you asked him directly he would deny the fact he felt anything of the sort. The raven would also deny that said fear is what made him join and become one of the best Scouting Captain that anyone had seen, as well as an asset to anyone with the information that he can gather as if it's nothing. He was irreplaceable.

It took the raven a few silent moments to collect his thoughts before he spoke up once more. "I wonder how those will turn out. We were the ones who faced the titans first hand. We saw the destruction that they could do."

"Well, I suggest you make your way towards Akabayashi-san, then. He is waiting for you." The black-haired secretary paused in her steps momentarily, causing her boss to pause a few paces in front of her. She pushed some of her black hair out of her face before speaking. "I would suggest you actually go to see him this time. I don't enjoy dealing with the fallout of your reckless actions."

"Yes yes, Namie. I heard you. I'm going to see him." Izaya waved off his secretary's comments with just a motion of his hand as he eyed her uniform. She continued to wear that green, two-toned turtleneck that he never understood the constant need for her to wear year-round (though, he couldn't say much due to his obsession with his favorite fur-trimmed jacket that was almost never off the Scout Captain) and her red mini-skirt—which in his opinion, clashed with her entire 'I take no shit' image. Though, he could tell she tried to keep her professional image with her black tights and black heels. She wore a long-sleeved, white half-jacket that stopped at her mid-back that had the image of a cat's head in both black and yellow on the left breast and on the center of her back. It was the standard jacket for the ones investigating the Titans. The scientists, but in Namie's case, she was Izaya's secretary first. He smirked, enjoying the annoyed look at he received. "Who said my actions were reckless?"

The raven didn't stay to see his secretary scowl at him as he walked away, he could feel it burning his back as he walked. He couldn't fully disagree with Namie; avoiding Akabayashi wasn't the safest decision he's made, but he was known for playing with fire—and he _really_ liked playing with fire. Giving a quick glance to his surroundings, his humans seemed to be too preoccupied to even register his existence. Izaya bit the inside of his cheek quietly, hiding his annoyance as he walked. He couldn't let his mind wonder just yet; Shiki might have someone following him just to make sure that he went to see Akabayashi this time—the man was becoming impatient with the raven's antics it seems.

Chuckling to himself, the raven casually skipped his way toward the training grounds humming an unknown tune. He had no issue ignoring the strange looks that he started to get as he skipped past small groups of his humans. Their glares were warranted, he supposed. It wasn't his fault his humans always died on his missions and he always came back alive, but his humans needed someone to blame and he was willing to be that person—or god in this case. Even with those glares and heated looks, Izaya's attitude wasn't deterred in any way; in fact, he was kind of excited to see Akabayashi.

A small smirk made its way back onto the captain's face as he walked, his mind traveling toward the new 'volunteers' that he could observe. According to Namie, none of them had seemed interesting, but at the same time, there were a few from his old district. He wondered if he would see some of his old acquaintances in the mixture of everyone, and honestly, he hoped that he wouldn't. The chances of actually finding at least one were high, and he secretly worried that they would be dumb enough to work under him. Maybe he should have told Namie to invest deeper into them to see what they wanted.

It wasn't long until the sounds of pain from his humans hit his ears, startling the raven ever so slightly. His mind flashed back to only a few days ago, the memory of his mission still so vivid. He could still hear the blood-curdling screams of his former squad and feel the blood of the Titans on his skin, making him feel itchy and disgusting—and in desperate need of a shower. Blinking the surprise out of his eyes, the Scout Captain grounded himself by focusing on the buildings surrounding him and the feel of his favorite switchblade in his pocket. His gaze soon landed on a nearby building that overlooked the training grounds. Smirking to himself, the raven climbed his way to the roof of the building, his eyes landing on Akabayashi.

Izaya hummed to himself, it seemed that the red-haired man hadn't noticed his presence on the rooftop—and why would he? It took no time for the raven to lay on his back and stare at the blue sky, his gaze focused on the few white clouds that littered the area. The air was calm and the rays of sunshine bathing his skin soothed him slightly, he instinctively relaxed slightly under the heat. The raven let a small sigh escape his lips as his eyes closed for a few seconds, relishing in the calm atmosphere around him. It was sickening how calm everything seemed from below when reality as they knew it was falling apart due to monsters.

The raven let his mind wander to those monsters just outside of the walls and the mission he had just returned from. It was supposed to be a simple mission, observe the Titans for a few days to gather relevant information, but his humans had decided that it was more important to kill the monsters against his orders. It happened faster than what the raven thought possible at that moment, his humans rode past him once they had noticed the monsters, blades out.

The first to die, an average man with dark brown hair—Izaya didn't bother to learn his name, he figured the man would die soon—had run toward the Titans, he didn't even get to use his maneuver gear. As soon as he was spotted, fear had taken over the man and he stood there, paralyzed as the monster just smiled at him. He remembered cursing inwardly as he had to make the quick decision to save the human or let him die; neither option sounded appealing. Using his maneuver gear, the raven flew up toward the trees, commanding his troops to retreat. He watched the titan grab the man slowly, lifting him up to his monstrous mouth before biting him in half. The blood of his old subordinate flew, covering the ground and the hands of the monster that held him.

None of his humans wanted to listen to reason, though. After the first one's death, his humans felt as though they had to avenge him. The raven cursed to himself, watching his humans run as if they could change the outcome of this situation. It was saddening to watch, some of these humans had the potential to stay alive. His eyes landed on a woman, her black hair ruffling in the wind as she rode up to the titan. The Scout Captain cursed to himself once more, taking the risk of using his maneuver gear to fly up and cut the nape of the monster, causing it to crash onto the forest floor.

Izaya could feel the blood of a titan hit his skin, his eyes focused on a clearing nearby and the screams of his humans. This really wasn't ideal; his humans were attracting attention. His gaze landed back onto his subordinates, a small smirk playing on his lips. "We should retreat unless you wish to die."

"There was only one titan, we should be fine!" One of his scouts had yelled, eager despite the recent death.

"Not if you don't keep your mouth shut."

"We should just kill them!"

Izaya never got a chance to order his team to retreat as the thundering of footsteps ran through the forest, the Earth thundering with each step. This wasn't good. The Scout Captain fixed his eyes on the oncoming titan, his mask nearly faltering in the process. There wasn't just one titan; he could feel the presence of multiple, but the question was: how many? "Now, see what you did?" The raven couldn't keep the teasing out of his voice, relishing in the fear that his humans felt at that exact moment before he narrowed his eyes. "Now, retreat if you wish to live."

His humans screamed, charging toward the Titans once more which only aggravated the raven. "What is the point of me leading if none of my humans listen to me?" His question left unanswered, knowing it was rhetorical, to begin with. He followed his humans, doing his best to lessen the already increasing number of dead bodies. He used his gear to fly toward a tree, landing on a branch gracefully in order to count the oncoming threat.

Six. There were six monsters wearing human skin running toward them, and the raven couldn't tell if any of them were abnormals. Huffing, Izaya used his gear to maneuver with his team, doing his best to keep his humans from killing themselves. As quickly as he could, Izaya took out his blades in preparation for the fight that was coming with a smirk on his face. He waited only a few seconds before he attacked, his agility making it easy. He could feel the blood of the Titans on in skin as it slowly evaporated into nothing, making him feel gross. He'd have to remember to shower once he got back.

Izaya felt his eyes widen slightly as he watched more of his humans die. He watched a titan grab the wires that connected the grapple-hooks to the gear and pull down, the person's body crashing to the ground with a sickening crack. The titan picked up the body, smiling as it did and opened its mouth. Izaya could see the body lay limp in the monster's hands, indicating that the person was already dead before they were going to be ingested by the creature.

Everything else after that moment was a blur to the raven. He wasn't sure in what order his squad had died, but he did remember the smell of blood that raided the air and how heavy his body felt as he stood on the nape of a titan. Izaya looked at the six monster bodies that littered the ground around him as he glared. This wasn't how this mission was supposed to go. He loved his humans—he really did—but the fact that they all seemed to lack self-preservation skills and slowly started to irritate him.

Holding in a sigh, Izaya sat up and scanned the cliques that the volunteers seemed to have formed. He hummed quietly, eyes scanning faces that he didn't recognize, nor did he bother to learn. It's not like most of them would be in the scouts anyway, and the ones that were would probably end up dead by the month's end. The raven twisted the rings that donned his fingers once more before his eyes landed on a dreadlocked man, who was currently watching some of the other volunteers test out the maneuver gear; and failing.

Izaya's blood red eyes focused on the tall man with dark brown dreadlocks who, to the raven, looked vaguely familiar in some sort of way. The raven quickly scanned his papers once more, looking for the one that carried this man's information. His confusion was soon replaced with a knowing look as he stared at the information printed in front of him. _Tom Tanaka. Age: 27. Birthday: May 5. Height: 172cm. Weight: 64kg. Blood Type: B. Wall: Raijin._ Izaya closed his eyes briefly, humming to himself as he let it sink in. The Scout Captain wasn't surprised to find someone from his wall, hell it wasn't the first person he's seen from his wall join the fight, but it still worried him slightly.

"Tom-san, do you think we'll be able to do this?" A female voice broke the raven of his thoughts as his eyes significantly widened. This couldn't be. If she was here that meant that the others would be here as well, and he wasn't sure how that set with him.

"I don't see why we wouldn't be able to. It doesn't look too hard."

Izaya let his eyes land on the female, surprise almost evident on his features. He didn't even need his files to figure out who she was, he knew everything just by looking at her ever so familiar face. _Erika Karisawa. Age: 22. Birthday: November 3. Height: 160cm. Weight: 55kg. Blood Type: B. Wall: Raijin._ Erika hadn't changed since the last time that he had seen her, her hair still in her typical style—pulled back into a braid along the back of her head. The brunette was still wearing her standard black newsboy cap and a long-sleeved, black cheongsam with black ankle boots.

"Don't underestimate things." A blonde man stated, only causing Izaya to bite the inside of his cheek. "I'm pretty sure this isn't going to be like they are in manga."

"I didn't assume it would be." Erika half-heartedly snapped at the blonde, which only caused the two of them to grin at each other.

Blood red eyes landed on the blonde Erika was currently talking to, a small smirk on his lips. Even if he didn't want all his acquaintances there, that didn't make this any less interesting. Besides, they weren't guaranteed to even make it past the training phase. _Walker Yumasaki. Age: 22. Birthday: January 23. Height: 174cm. Weight: 55kg. Blood Type: A. Wall: Raijin._ It seemed that he hadn't changed much, either. Walker still wore his light blue sweatshirt and black pants that he did back in middle school, he even still carried that backpack full of manga. The raven also noticed the typical _kitsune no me _(fox eyes)expression that he had always appreciated.

"Do you two ever focus on things _other_ than anime and manga?" A brown-haired man asked, sighing slightly at the two. He brushed some of his bangs out of his face as he looked over to the three other people of their small group, an attempt to ignore the two friends.

The raven didn't even need to think about who this man was. _Saburo Togusa. Age: 25. Birthday: July 30. Height: 166cm. Weight: 56kg. Blood Type: A. Wall: Raijin._ If anything, he was sure that Saburo grew over the last ten years, but that wasn't much of a surprise. He had always been the calm, laid back type of person of the group; hell, he wasn't sure if he had ever lost his temper. Izaya watched Saburo talk to two other humans that he didn't know, a dark brown-haired male and a blonde male. Who were these two and what was their relationship with Dotachin's gang?

Izaya noted the brunet male hadn't spoken to anyone, let alone show any sign of emotion on his face. He looked interesting, why could that be? His eyes scanned the stack of papers once more, his fingers tracing the corners of the paper as he read on. _Kasuka_ _Heiwajima. Age: 21. Birthday: February 22. Height: 177cm. Weight: 62kg. Blood Type: O. Wall: Raijin._ Ah, so he was there as well? The raven hummed to himself, not surprised. Maybe seeing the Titans was what caused the lack of emotion on the man's face, but Izaya found that unlikely. He figured it had more to do with the extremely animated blonde next to him who had been smoking a cigarette.

"Do those two ever shut up?" The blonde had asked, irritation clear on his face. He glanced over at Kasuka with a sigh. "Yes, I know. Keep my temper in check. I got it."

Izaya hummed to himself as if he was responding. He turned to the next page, he had already concluded they might be related, but the scanning of his name just confirmed it. _Shizuo Heiwajima. Age: 24. Birthday January 28. Height: 185cm. Weight: 70kg. Blood Type: O. Wall: Raijin._ The man had blonde hair, which Izaya wasn't sure if it was dyed or not, and blue sunglasses. He also wore a bartender suit, which only confused the raven as to _why_. Maybe he was a bartender before he decided to join the fight (granted, one could not join as a cadet until at least the age of 20—Izaya being an exception. Something about this name seemed familiar, but Izaya couldn't place it for the life of him. Instead, he turned his focus to the last of the group, one of his favorite humans.

The last of the group wore a black beanie with a teal jacket, jeans, and black shoes. His hair was dark brown under the beanie, and his brown eyes looked over at Shizuo. A small sigh escaped the man's lips as he shook his head knowingly. _Kyouhei Kadota. Age: 23. Birthday: September 15. Height: 183cm. Weight: 74kg. Blood Type: B. Wall: Raijin. _Dotachin, being as peaceful as ever it seemed. The raven watched Dotachin shake his head at his friends with a sigh escaping his lips. Izaya felt for the man, he knew that those two wouldn't stop their conversation about the latest manga even if the world was ending—and to some people it was.

Izaya scanned the grounds once more in an attempt to look for Akabayashi, a smirk playing on his lips once he spotted the man sitting down on a nearby bench. The raven stretched his arms, tossing the papers aside in a dramatic fashion. Placing both hands inside of his pockets, Izaya jumped from the roof and landed on his feet gracefully before walking his way toward the man. "Ah, Akabayashi! I was told by my dear secretary that you wished to speak with me."

"Orihara," Akabayashi stated, his eyes scanning the raven as he spoke. "I see you made it back in one piece. I'm glad."

Izaya smirked at the man in front of him, eyes scanning the volunteers as he spoke. "Please, you do not have to pretend."

The man chuckled as he finally faced the Scout Captain, a knowing smile on his face. "I am not pretending, Orihara. While I am suspicious of you, I am quite glad that you did come back seemingly unscathed. I am not looking forward to the day where you do not return." Akabayashi fiddled with his cane as his smile never faded, making the raven chuckle.

"I see. I do not believe that time will be soon, but I am honored that you are concerned about my wellbeing."

"How could I not? I'm sure that Shiki-san would be quite disappointed to find his _favorite_ captain had been slain."

The raven chuckled once more, the idea amusing. "I wouldn't go as far to say that I am Shiki-san's favorite captain, but I will say that he finds me quite useful." Izaya let his eyes roam his surroundings once more, locking eyes for Erika for just a split second before he looked back over toward the scarred man next to him. Ah, it seems he had been spotted a bit sooner than what he would have originally liked, but what else did he expect? Maybe the woman would keep quiet until tomorrow, or at least until he left. "I do believe that he will wish to speak with me soon. I have some information that had asked me for."

"It stinks." An unknown voice came from Erika's direction. Izaya didn't bother turning to face the source, his focus was on Akabayashi. He would be sure to come back tomorrow with Shinra, who he was sure would love to talk to their old acquaintances from Raijin.

"Is that Iza-Iza?!" The woman's voice rang out, louder than it probably should have been. The raven held in a sigh, keeping his smirking mask toward Akabayashi would just give him a quizzical look in return.

"Wait, are you serious?" He could hear Kadota ask as he tried to ignore the number of eyes that were now focused on him. As subtly as he could, the raven maneuvered his body to where his back was facing the group in an attempt to prolong Dotachin seeing him. He wasn't in the mood to deal with the questions that would ensue if he was found.

"Yes! Dotachin it's him, I'm sure of it!"

"What kind of nickname is Iza-Iza?" Shizuo asked, only earning an annoyed groan from Kadota.

"Iza-Iza, don't ignore me!" Erika almost screamed, instantly earning a reprimand from Kadota to keep her voice down and if the person doesn't answer it clearly wasn't Izaya.

"I see you are quite popular with that group," Akabayashi stated only causing the raven to chuckle once more.

"Yes, they are acquaintances of mine from Wall: Raijin. I haven't seen them since the wall was breached, but I plan on catching up with them some other time." Earning a hum of acknowledgment, the raven smirked down at Akabayashi once more. "I believe I shall leave you to your training." Izaya backed away from the man slightly. "I would find it quite amusing if you work that group," Izaya tilted his head toward Kadota and Erika swiftly, making sure the man knew who he was talking about. "twice as hard. Think of it as a 'welcome' gift from yours truly."

Akabayashi chuckled to himself as he shook his head. "You're a piece of work, Orihara." The scarred man stood, using his cane as support in the process before taking a step forward to leave. "I will be sure work them twice as hard for you." With that, the man walked toward the groups of volunteers, his demeanor changing drastically in the process to a friendlier one.

"Yes, I know," Izaya replied more to himself than to the man walking away as he chuckled. He tilted his head back once more to Kadota's group, seeing Erika's eyes on him once more. He gave her a smirk and a small wave of greeting before he walked away, earning an annoying sound from the woman.

"Iza-Iza I know that's you! Get back here and come greet us properly!"

Ah, once he told Shinra who he found things would sure get interesting~!

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Thank you for reading this! I honestly had a lot of fun typing this up and I hope it's received well! I have no idea where I am going with this idea-since I don't know much about the Shingeki no Kyojin universe. Any ideas or thoughts that you have would be appreciated if you like it enough to actually see it go on lol

And please be aware that any updates to this story could take a while due to the fact that I don't know what I'm doing, and just this one chapter took me almost a week to type because I just wasn't happy with how things were worded at first.


	2. Chapter 2

Here's an update for you! I'm sorry that this took longer than I thought it would; I had writer's block and I wasn't sure how I wanted to continue this without it seeming too forced-and I hope it doesn't sound forced!

As always, thank you to my friend for beta reading this for me as I go!

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Things should get interesting soon.

The Scout Captain hummed to himself as he walked inside the mess hall, his blood red eyes scanning the area in search for a mop of brown hair or the black smoke of his companion, but to no avail. His eyes landed on several different groups of his humans as they sat and talked, eating whatever food that was in front of them—if you could classify what slop they were eating as food; Izaya would never subject his body to whatever _that_ was. He did a quick once-over before he turned out quickly to leave, silently cursing at the fact that Namie '_forgot'_ to place his phone inside the pockets of his jacket. He should really do something to warn the woman about her job security in retaliation—just to scare her of course. Where would he be without his beloved secretary?

Izaya hummed once more, his thoughts wandering off toward his bespectacled friend. "Ah, if I was a hopeless puppet of a human where would I be?" His question was rhetorical, he knew there were only a handful of places that the man would be; all of them involved his Dullahan. The sun felt warm on his face as he stepped outside, the wind blowing just slightly as if it was attempting to cool off all the people that it met. His eyes scanned the humans he passed as he started along the sidewalk, none of them seemingly acknowledging his existence.

A small smirk crossed his features as he started his leisurely pace toward his friend's most probable location. Maybe he could do something to mess with the doctor out of spite for making him go all the way to his apartment instead of somewhere that was a bit more convenient for the raven, but that would be saved for a later date. Izaya chuckled as he started to skip, his mind focusing on the task at hand; finding Shinra—or Celty, then by extension he would find Shinra. How should he bring up the topic of Dotachin and his gang as volunteers; he _was_ their mutual friend after all.

After a couple of minutes, he came to a stop at a crosswalk and his eyes fixated on the buildings around him that stood tall with the sunlight reflecting off the glass. What did Dotachin and the others hope to accomplish if they completed their training? What part of the military did they want to get into? His eyes softened for a fraction of a second as he followed the crowd through the streets. He had to focus on one thing at a time; there was no use working himself up over something that he didn't have the proper information for yet.

He twirled once as he walked, making sure not to bump into any of his humans and chuckled to himself. It didn't take long for his trained ears to pick up some tidbits of conversations that were never meant for him. Each human seemed to carry this air of positivity as they spoke to one another about trivial matters such as who they were into and what they were going to do later that evening—apparently enka had become popular. His eyes scanned the crowd once more, lingering on the faces of random individuals for mere seconds before he focused his gaze straight ahead. They all seemed so happy, each person with a smile on their face with looks that truly showed how naive they were to their surroundings and the impending danger that they were in; even if they were inside Wall Sunshine, the innermost wall.

It only took a couple of more minutes of walking for Izaya to stop in front of the apartment building of his best, and only, friend. It was a tall building, about 21 meters tall; which was nothing compared to the 50-meter walls that surrounded the area, protecting them from the Titans. His eyes landed on the windows above him, the glare from the sun at just the right angle in order to bother his eyes if stared upon for too long. Blinking, the raven made his way inside and started up the stairs toward the 4th floor; Izaya wasn't one to stand in an elevator and wait if it would just be faster to do the work himself, after all. Plus, the small workout that the stairs would bring him would help ease his anxious heart, even if he refused to admit it to himself.

Izaya made it to his friend's door in a matter of minutes, the numbers 542 shining with the metallic sheen that contrasted the painted black of the door as he approached. Letting out a breath he wasn't aware that he was holding, Izaya knocked on the door thrice; his ears picking up movement from the other side. It didn't take long for the raven to guess who was at the door before it opened, revealing his bespectacled friend who wore his cheery smile. "Izaya! You're back already?"

The raven nodded toward his friend as he entered the apartment, leaving his shoes by the door. "Shinra," He spared his friend a quick glance, noticing his white lab coat, his brown eyes shining with curiosity. He quickly ventured deeper into the apartment, scanning the clean interior and the half-closed curtains blocking the sunlight. "I just arrived a couple of hours ago." He paused his movements for a fraction of a second before he perched himself on the couch, his back facing Shinra. "Is the Dullahan around? I have something to discuss with both of you."

"Celty?" Shinra blinked, coming around to face Izaya, sitting on the couch next to him. "I think she'll be back shortly; she just went on a supply run." The brunet watched his ruby-eyed friend hum in acknowledgment before he continued. "Why? What's up?"

Izaya waved his hand dismissively at Shinra, smirking to himself. "I'll wait until she arrives. It's something I believe that you two will find most…intriguing."

Shinra stared at his friend for a moment, unsure how to interpret the smirk painting on his face; with Izaya, it could mean a plethora of different things. Nodding slightly, he tilted his head at his friend, his glasses catching the sunlight just slightly, causing a small glare. "Would you like something to drink then? A shower, perhaps?"

"It seems you know me too well," Izaya stated as he stretched his arms over his head, hearing his joints pop at the motion. "I assume that you've got a spare change of clothes for me from last time I was here?" The raven didn't wait for his friend to respond as he stood up and made his way toward the one room shower, secretly glad that Shinra had offered. The need for one had almost slipped his mind with the new information he had gathered from the training grounds.

Shinra smiled to himself as he watched Izaya walk away, a small hint of fondness in his features. It wasn't odd for his friend to show up unannounced, but it _was_ concerning how out of it the man had seemed. While most people wouldn't notice it, there was this stiffness in the other's shoulders and a strange emotion in his eyes that he was sure Izaya couldn't hide even if he tried—and if Shinra was honest with himself, it worried him slightly. The bespectacled male shook his head in an attempt to clear his thoughts as he heard a door latch shut followed by the sound of running water. Hopefully, Izaya would relax a bit after a shower, but maybe he should make some tea as well; just in case.

The brunet smiled as he left the couch, making his way toward the kitchen with ease. He fished out his teapot and filled it with water before setting it on the stovetop. It would only take a couple of minutes for the water to come to a boil before he could put the tea in the steep; it was plenty of time to let his mind wander a semi-simpler time—one where he wouldn't silently worry about Izaya's wellbeing every day. One where him, Izaya, Celty, and the others would spend their lunches together and talk about whatever happenings they found interesting—or whatever Izaya wanted to talk about, to be honest; he always seemed to lead the conversations. Shinra chuckled to himself as his mind switch over to the love of his life; his Dullahan.

His head shot up as he heard a door opening, head turning in the direction of the noise out of pure instinct. A woman with a yellow helmet walked into the kitchen, dressed in a skintight black biker suit; the sight made his face light up with pure joy. Her hands typed quickly on her phone; helmet tilted down to show her undivided attention to the device as she padded toward the man. "Celty!" Shina jumped to her, arms wrapping around her waist. "I missed you!"

[I see that we have a guest today.]

The bespectacled man blinked at the illuminated screen that the woman held in front of his face, the black text staring at him. "That's right, I almost forgot. Once I saw you my mind just—" Shinra didn't get to finish his sentence due to the hands shoving him away and the high-pitched screech of the teapot that sat on the stove, indicating that the water was ready. Sighing, the man turned around to pour the scalding water into the cups he had laid out just moments earlier.

Celty tilted her helmet as she watched Shinra as if to indicate that she was thinking. Shinra never drank tea, at least he didn't drink it often. She quickly turned her helmet to the direction of their shower, as if she had just noticed the sound of water running. So, they needed a shower? Why would they come here for a shower when all the apartments had one? The woman's shoulders stiffened ever so slightly as if she had just put two and two together. Her hands shaking as she quickly typed her message before shoving it back into Shinra's face. [Izaya's here?!]

"Izaya? Oh yeah, he showed up a little while ago, said that he had something to talk to us about." Shinra paused his movements for a split second, the two cups in his hands as he turned around. He blinked at Celty for a moment, the steam from both cups fogging up his glasses slightly. He gave her a small smile before making his way back into the living room, placing the two cups down on the table. "He seemed tense, so I'm hoping a shower and some tea will help him calm his nerves."

Celty nodded, following the man before she sat down on the couch. Both her hands reached for her helmet, taking it off with one swift motion before placing it beside her. Black smoke flowed out of her neck, her shoulders relaxing slightly before she took out her phone once more, her fingers tapping the surface with practiced grace. [Do you think any survived this time?]

"I doubt it, but I don't think that's why he was so tense."

[What do you think it could be?]

"I'm not quite sure, but whatever it is I'm not sure if it's good or bad." Shina sat next to Celty on the couch with a sigh. "I'm not quite sure what to think, especially with him."

[It's Izaya… It can't be too bad.]

"I see Celty came home. Did he fill you in?" The two figures on the couch jumped slightly, both startled by the sudden words being spoken. They both turned in the direction of Izaya, who stood in the hallway dressed in his spare clothes that Shinra kept in hand (his usual black shirt and jeans) and a towel loosely around his neck to catch the falling droplets of water that fell from his hair. "Or has he been trying to get you into bed during the entirety of my shower?"

"I have not—this time." Shinra stated. "Unless my dearest Celty would like to discuss tha—"

Izaya smirked as he watched his friend fall off the couch, the woman in question being the cause. Watching the scene in front of him was probably the most satisfying thing he had seen the past several days. The raven moved toward the lounge chair that sat across from the couch, his eyes finally landing on the two cups of tea. He bit the inside of his cheek to keep from forming the smile that threatened to tug at his lips; Shinra noticed his tense posture earlier it had seemed. Even if Izaya refused to say it out loud, he was glad to have Shinra as his friend—and he _refused _to say it out loud.

The Scout Captain gracefully reached his arm out to grasp the cup on the table, feeling the heat of the liquid through the porcelain. He let his body relax into the chair as he leaned back, watching his friend climb his way back onto the couch. "So, guess who I discovered join the volunteers today."

The question itself caused Shinra to blink at his friend, confusion written all over his face. "Why would that be important? We both know there have been plenty of volunteers from our wall in the past. Plus, we both know I don't' care about humans. I only care about Celty."

[Maybe it's someone you know?]

Izaya chuckled to himself as he watched Shinra shake his head, easily dismissing the subject. He knew that Shinra purposely omitted the fact he cares about him, but it was a fact that didn't need to be said out loud; it was as if it was an unspoken rule to never allude or discuss their friendship. "Oh, trust me, you might find this intriguing." He paused, taking a small sip of his tea. He could feel the heat make its way down his throat, leaving an unpleasant burn in its wake. "Dotachin."

Shinra paused mid-conversation with Celty to look at Izaya. "Kadota? Our Kadota is a volunteer? Doesn't that mean the others followed him?"

"Yes, they all seemed to be eager to try out the maneuver gear while I was there. They haven't changed a bit, now that I think about it." The raven paused once more, taking a sip of his tea as if to feign relaxation before speaking. "Though, they were talking to a few others from our wall. I couldn't quite place them if I am honest."

"You? Not being able to place someone?" Shinra raised a brow at his friend, skepticism on his face. "That's quite rare. Are you sure they were from our wall, then? Maybe you're losing your touch."

[Shinra!] Celty typed, shoving the phone in his face. [It's Izaya you're talking to. We both know that's not possible!]

The raven chuckled once more before speaking. "Thank you for your faith in my abilities, Celty." He took another sip of his tea, his throat used to the oncoming burn that was going to be followed by the 'not-yet-cooled' liquid. "They were talking to some humans named Tom Tanaka, Kasuka Heiwajima, and Shizuo Heiwajima."

"Wait, did you say Shizuo Heiwajima?"

Izaya hummed in reply before sipping his tea. "Yes. I take it you know him?"

"Yes, remember that friend I wanted to introduce you to before our wall was breached? That's him!" Shinra exclaimed, his eyes shining at the familiar name. "I can't believe he volunteered! I wonder what he's going to do! With his strength, he could do anything!"

"His strength?"

"Yeah! He has inhuman strength. I've actually watched him pull up a street sign as if it weighed as much as a flower!" Shinra paused for a moment, his eyes landing on Izaya's intrigued face. "He's got quite the temper, though."

"So, you're friends with a monster." The statement wasn't as much as an insult as he would have liked it to sound; the two of them knowing the only _true_ monsters Izaya believed in were the ones outside the walls. "Well, if you wish, you can introduce us tomorrow on the training grounds. I'm sure your friend would be delighted to see you."

(╬◣Д◢)! ! . . . ╮(╯▽╰)╭

"You seem quite excited. Does this beast mean that much to you?"

"Of course! Shizuo was my first friend, after all."

Izaya hummed in acknowledgment as the two continued their leisurely pace. It was a quarter past two, lunch already eaten and settled in the stomachs of the friends as they continued down the sidewalk toward the training grounds. Very few people littered the pathway, all too engrossed in their own world to pay attention to the duo. They were close to the grounds, the grunts and moans of pain only increasing in volume with each step they took. The raven glanced over at his friend, who had his never fading smile on his face.

Izaya let his gaze linger on his friend a little longer than necessary, taking his time on him as if he were some antique that needed an appraisal. Shinra wore his long, white lab coat, the white of the fabric catching the sunlight to reflect almost blindingly back. Like Namie's the day before, the coat had the image of a cat's head in both black and yellow on the left breast and on the center of his back; the indicator that he was a part of the scientific unit. From the angle Izaya was at, his friend's glasses sent a small glare as the sun hit their faces—it made him curse the three centimeters in height difference that they had. His gaze was focused in front of him, the prospect of seeing his long-lost friend seemingly overriding his thought process as he unconsciously picked up the pace of his stride.

What was it about this apparent beast that had his friend so excited? Shinra had never expressed such happiness to another human before; excluding himself and Celty because he was a god and she was a Dullahan. Could it be that Shizuo wasn't classified as human; that would make sense with how Shinra had mentioned this 'inhuman strength' the day before. He was broken out of his thoughts by the high-pitched sound of Shinra whistling and the stench of sweat in the air. His eyes glanced over the grounds in front of him, groups of his humans fighting one another with Akabayashi in the middle of them. "Looks like class is in session."

He watched Shinra nod in agreement as they made way their closer. Izaya's ruby gaze scanned the crowd sitting down, easily spotting that none of them were Kadota or his group; in fact, these humans were crying. It seems that Akabayashi had worked them hard enough to where they were bruised, and their egos diminished. It was pathetic to the raven; how could some humans give up so easily after a few hard days of training and work? Did they expect this to be easy, for it to come naturally as if this profession was made for them?

"You call that a punch? Hit him _harder_." It was Akabayashi's voice that rang loud, but not loud enough to be considered yelling. In fact, Izaya wasn't sure he's ever heard the man yell in the past ten years he's known him.

"Do you see them?" Shinra questioned, his brown eyes trained on the grounds in front of him as if he's searching as well, but with no luck.

"Yes, actually."

"Where at?"

Izaya pointed toward the far end of the grounds by the maneuver gear training section. There were seven people there, one in the training course and the rest surrounding that person. He was too far away for the raven to guess who it was, but he couldn't miss the tall blonde man even if he tried to; he stuck out like a sore thumb. "It seems they wanted to test out their balance." There was soon a loud thudding sound, followed by a grunt of pain. He wasn't sure if the moan was carried from the other side of the grounds or if it was from the hand-to-hand trainees, but it didn't matter either way. "Though, it seems that they're not quite as graceful as they should be."

Shinra let his gaze follow his friend's, his smile never leaving his face. In fact, Izaya could wear the grin only widened. "Let's go!"

The raven watched as his friend grabbed the arm of his favorite (and quite frankly iconic) jacket, pulling him along as he went. It was as if Shinra was afraid that he would leave him in favor of doing something else, but that wasn't quite the case. In fact, Izaya was intrigued and curious about this beast named Shizuo _Heiwajima. "You know, I'm not going anywhere."_

Shinra merely shrugged in response as if the statement wasn't worth the use of his vocal cords. In fact, the brunet thought a more important use for them was to bring attention to himself as they approached the group. "Shizuo! Kadota!"

The two men jumped at the mention of their names, their gazes leaving their friend to look over at the raven and brunet. "Shinra?"

As the two approached, Kadota's eyes widened a bit more in surprise. "Izaya?"

"Dotachin." The raven felt a smirk spread across his face as he maintained eye contact with Kadota, who only gave him a pointed look at the nickname. He could feel everyone's eyes on him as he spoke. "You really should learn to listen to Erika occasionally. I believe she told you that she saw me yesterday, quite loudly I might add."

Izaya switched his gaze over toward Shizuo, ignoring the voice of Erika as she berated Kadota for ignoring her the day before. The man's golden eyes locked onto his ruby ones for a split second before he switched over to the person laying on the ground. Being up close helped determine that it was, in fact, Walker, face first in the dirt. "For someone blessed with the _kitsune no me __look, you're not graceful." Walked hummed, looking up at Izaya from his position. "Do you need some help? Additional training, perhaps?"_

_Walker nodded, his smile never fading as he stood up and started to unfasten himself from the gear that was holding him. "That would be appreciated. We don't know if there's a trick to it or not!" The raven chuckled as the blonde man handed him the belt, the weight heavy in his hands. It seemed that the man didn't bother questioning him, in fact, he seemed overly delighted to have some more insight on the machinery._

"If anyone should show us how to use it, it should be Shinra. He's got the only rank here." It was a deep voice that spoke, causing the raven to look over to see Shizuo's scowl. "Not this _flea_."

"Shizuo," That was Shinra's voice speaking; Izaya could tell even as his eyes never left the blonde's. "Trust me when I say that he should be the one to show you. I actually have no idea how those things work. Well, I do in theory, but I've never been able to use it."

"You're kidding me."

"Nope!"

"It's ok, Shizuo. If anyone knows how to do something, it's Izaya."

"Shinra," That was Kadota, his voice almost an octave lower than Shinra's, but not quite the growl that Shizuo's seemed to be. Izaya made quick work of attaching the belt to his person as the man continued. "It's been ten years. Where have you two been?"

The sound of Erika squealing rang through the air, followed by a whoosh as Izaya was lifted off the ground by the gear, his body balanced in place as if he weighed nothing; and they were pretty sure it weighed nothing. The raven hung there for a few minutes, letting the others watch and focus on the thin wires connecting him to the practice station. "It works best if you have great leg strength, coupled with spatial recognition abilities, as well as the mental strength," Shinra stated, pushing his glasses up slightly. "At least, that's what I've read."

"Why do we need mental strength for this?" It was a new voice to the raven, causing him to move his gaze to that direction. It came from the brown-haired Heiwajima, his voice monotone and his expression unchanging as he watched Izaya; in some way, it reminded him of Namie. What was his name, Kasuka?

"So you don't die," Izaya stated, eyes flickering with amusement as a few faces paled. The raven lowered himself to the ground, detaching the belt from his person as he spoke. "You won't make it five minutes outside these walls if you can't keep a level head." The belt fell heavy in his hands, his eyes never leaving the stoic man as he continued. "If one cannot stay upright, they will be dismissed. The military has no use for humans who cannot control themselves. Do you wish to try? Do you think you will fare better than your peers, or are you scared of the outcome?" He let his eyes scan everyone else, his voice casual as if he were discussing what to have for dinner. "I can guarantee you will die outside these walls in some fashion; the chance doubled if you cannot keep some form of calm."

The raven heard a growl coming from the taller blonde; the one he classified as a beat. The low registered sound caused him to turn around, his gaze easily meeting the golden one directed at him in the form of glare. He watched the dreadlocked man place a hand on his shoulder as if to hold him back from whatever he wanted to do. "Are you threatening us, flea?"

"Down, beast. I am merely being realistic." Izaya stated, holding his hand up in dismissal as he handed the belt to Erika.

"I'm not a fucking beast."

Izaya watched Shizuo's hands twitch as if they unconsciously attempted to fist themselves into tension and look for the relief of a punch. He gave him his best smile, the attempt not quite reaching his eyes as he stepped forward. "Oh, but you are. You see, I know about you; about your strength. I'm quite interested in why they let a beast like you join the training." By now, their faces were centimeters apart, his smirk never leaving his lips. "Are my humans asking to die?"

"Izaya." That was Shinra, his voice barely audible from the growl that Shizuo was emitting. The sound caused Izaya to back up from Shizuo a few paces, but slow enough so the blonde didn't confuse this action as retreating. "We should go. They're trying to train after all, and I'm not wanting to deal with the issue of their tools breaking because of you."

"It would do them a service if I'm honest." The raven dismissed but nodded over toward the brunet as if a silent agreement to leave. He still had to discuss some things with Shiki and experiments to observe. He could always come back here later and watch his humans struggle to do basic things.

"We'll come by later this week to see how far you've progressed in your training if you guys are still here." Shinra stated, smiling over at his friends before he signaled for Izaya to follow him.

Izaya didn't hesitate to follow Shinra, in fact, he had already started the slow padding up to the brunet as he was talking. They made a few yards in distance before the raven turned around, the group still looking at this. He let his voice ring loud to cover what little distance there was between the two groups; just to make sure that the object of his attention would hear. "See you later, Shizu-chan."

* * *

Also, as a side note, I made a Tumblr so I can update people and browse random Shizaya things as I write. I'm not sure how much I'll use it other than post when I update something, but please feel free to ask me anything on there!


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